Social Media 101 – Step 5: Facebook Strategies…
By now, you’ve either lost interest, our you’re saying to yourself “Shut up, man – let’s get to some good, actionable stuff. Damn.”
Well – I’m getting to the actionable stuff. You know, you’re awfully demanding for someone who’s getting an awesome, free course on social marketing. I DO have a life, and I like to ramble, so you should cut me some slack. I mean, really – if it’s free, why are you complaining so much about my roundaboutness and rambling ways? I eventually get to the point – it’s just that you have to sit through some of my cute colloquialisms and interesting little sidetracks. Is it not worth it?
I’m getting to the point – HEY, MELLOW OUT, MAN!
Here it is – my Horribly Important and Phenomenally Timely Step 5:
Lesson 5: Facebook Strategies…
You’ve got your Facebook page all set up. It looks awesome (especially if we designed it for you) but where do you go from there?
You’ve got to USE your page, understand your page (especially Insights) and you’ve got to be consistent with it. And so – the exercise:
The Exercise:
Part 1: Use Your Page: This one seems reasonably simple – but a lot of folks just don’t know what to do. You’ve got to actually get in there and use your page – not just your Facebook personal account. What you want to do is “Use Facebook As…” your page. This will take you from your personal account to your business account. See that little photo to the right? That’s where you want to go. Click it – and you’re ready to start using Facebook as your business.
“Great,” you’re saying “What should I do now?” Well – there’s a lot to that question. When does your intended audience use Facebook? When are they the most receptive to your posts? What sort of posts are they looking for? Check your Insights for that kind of information. One thing about Insights – if you’re just starting out, you’ll not get a lot of good info there. You’re going to have to “throw it against the wall and see what sticks.” Post photos, post rants and raves and weird links. Post stuff that interests you, concerns your business. Just try a bunch of stuff. You never know what’s going to work. Find a leader in your field – see what they’re doing and steal* their ideas.
That’s for YOUR content. That’ll help entertain the folks who like your page – but how do you get more likes? How do you attract other businesses? The business end of it all is pretty straightforward – go around and find the businesses you’re looking to bring in as clients and customers. “Like” their page and post on their walls. Interact with them. Share and repost their stuff – add value to their pages, and they’ll return the favor. Not always, but it’s reasonably reciprocal…
Getting more public and individual “Likes” is a different thing all together, and that’s really a topic for another post (stay tuned!) – but liking businesses and adding high-value content are the first steps. If you build it, they will come – but you’ve got to build a compelling page with good content that works well and looks nice.
The main point in all this social media/social marketing thing is USE IT! USE IT A LOT! USE IT CONSISTENTLY!
Part 2: Understand Your Page: Read this. It’ll help you understand who’s hitting your page and using your content – and what’s effective. Understand the function of your buttons and different areas of your page. Know what you’re doing. Play around with it. Explore every aspect of administering your Facebook page. Again, this is a huge topic that a 101 course can’t really cover – but stay tuned, I’ll cover it in horribly awesome and generally informative semi-detail.
Part 3: Be Consistent With It: If I’ve said this once, I’ve said it a million freaking times – be consistent with your Facebook page. Hit it often and keep your message consistent and even. This is, like I’ve said, the most important part of all of this – keep it going. Study your demographic, decide on your message and your style – and then stick with it. Post regularly, surf other sites and businesses regularly and use it as much as you can. REMEMBER – THIS IS A MARATHON. Don’t get to the first turn and say “Screw it. I’m tired.” and go and get a cup of coffee while the rest of the runners keep going. You’ll never win the race that way…
Next up is Step 6: More Facebook Strategies…
*”Good artists borrow, great artists steal.” ~ Pablo Picasso (or maybe T.S. Elliott. Nobody really knows. It’s just a great quote that sort of fits here.)
